Not What You Were Expecting
by Tigeresssa
Summary: Kagome Higurashi had never thought she would find peace after her time in feudal Japan. Neither had Steve Rogers ever thought he would find his place in modern society. When they start running into each other after a mutually horrible afternoon, both think they have started to find a sense of normalcy. But things didn't work out quite as they'd hoped... Steve/Kagome
1. Run-in

If there was one thing about being a superhero in the modern world Steve Rogers wasn't used to, it was the sheer number and intensity of his fans... More specifically, fans of the female orientation. His entire day had involved him at various meetings concerning the Avengers, followed by being cooped up in Stark Tower due to having nothing better to do for the day. So to relieve his boredom and to get some fresh air, he'd decided to have an afternoon cup of coffee at his favourite café. However before he was even able to enter the front doors of his destination, he was swamped by a multitude of women. They were relentless. Pulling, grabbing, clawing and worse. Coming from a past where gentlemen did not push a lady, he found it difficult to extract himself from the crowd, even with his enhanced strength. He abandoned his jacket in favour of freedom, letting the women fight over it while he slipped between them. The second he was free was the second he started sprinting for his life.

Kagome Higurashi had endured a terrible day. Being near immortal definitely had some drawbacks. Sure she aged slowly, but that meant it was easy for employers, police and sleazy guys to assume she was younger and weaker than she really was. She had started the day with multiple job interviews, needing to pay rent among other things, only to be repeatedly rejected for the same reason... They thought she was underaged. The police thought the same thing as well, only they thought she was skipping school. Which of course she wasn't. It had taken some serious convincing and proof of both her license and passport before they accepted the truth. And finally on her way back home after this particularly frustrating day, Kagome had been stopped by a couple of guys who obviously had less than ill intentions when they asked her lewdly if she 'wanted to have some fun'. Needless to say, despite having some training in hand to hand combat from her past travels, she was not strong enough to take on three burly guys. So she ran.

Steve Rogers had been too focused on making sure there was a significant distance between himself and the raging hordes to notice that there was someone around the corner he was turning. So when he ran into the unfortunate individual, knocking her to the pavement, he stopped his plight to assist his victim by helping the small woman to her feet.

"Sorry miss! Are you okay?"

Kagome Higurashi felt like she'd run into a brick wall at full speed. Her head hurt from whatever she'd hit and her butt and back hurt from landing heavily on the pavement. As she came to her senses after being thoroughly knocked around, she was aware of the warm large hands on her arms that were pulling her up to her feet again and a polite yet concerned male voice asking if she was okay. She blinked up at the man and was pleasantly surprised to see bright blue eyes set in a handsome face.

"Y-Yeah I'm... fine..." She trailed off when she noticed the oncoming crowd of women from of his shoulder.

Remembering her own predicament, she turned around to see the guys from before still coming after her. Making quick judgement about how to get rid of both advancing parties, she formulated an improvised plan.

Steve Rogers had been stunned by the young girl's glittering blue eyes that were unique considering her obvious Asian background. Though as she answered his question, she noticed the crowd behind him. When she turned her head around to look behind herself, he saw a group of men running towards them as well.

He was about to ask her another question but was stopped when she turned back to face him and whispered, "Trust me and just play along."

And without any other forewarning she leaned up and kissed him.

* * *

**Hey there folks! So this is a little something that I concocted as a little bit of fun. Since I've never done a crossover before I was having a play around with this idea for a fair bit of time before I actually sat down and started to write it (while also getting some space between me and my other stories that are being quite the little terrors). But now that it's started, I thought I'd share and see how it goes. In saying that it was a bit of fun, updates will be VERY sporadic but I hope that nonetheless you will enjoy! I do love this couple and hope you do too!**

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


	2. Visual Communication

The first thought that entered his mind was that her lips were warm and soft, and his hands moved from their places on her arms to wrap around her slight frame. The second thought that entered his mind, almost immediately after the first, was that she was a complete stranger, and that they had an audience.

Kagome had never said it was a good plan... It was just a plan. It also wasn't a habit of hers to kiss a guy she had literally only known for a couple of seconds, but if her impromptu plan was to succeed, she needed a convincing performance. Since she had three sleazy perverts on her tail and he, a horde of hormone driven women, Kagome figured they could solve both problems by feigning they were boyfriend and girlfriend. Provided all things went to plan, the guys would back off as would the women. If only Miroku could see her now.

All was going well thus far, considering the men and women had stopped in their tracks upon seeing them. When she felt the man she was currently lip-locked with start to pull away despite having encased her in his arms not moments ago, she drew him back by moving her arms around his waist, holding him there firmly before she broke the kiss. She pulled back and smiled at him like he was the only thing in her vision but her eyes were imploring him to understand the real intention behind the false grin.

Steve looked down bewilderedly at the woman as she kept a grip on his sides as a subtle hint to tell him to stay where he was. Briefly, he wondered if he had run into one of his more psychotic fans, the ones who feigned ignorance of who he was and stalked him until they could find an opportunity to orchestrate a 'perfect coincidental meeting'; but something about the way she was looking at him gave him the feeling that it wasn't the case. When he didn't get what she was trying to communicate through her stare, he sent back a questioning look which thankfully, was immediately answered.

"Hey sweetie, where've you been? We were supposed to get coffee! I've had trouble looking for you," she said, leaning further into him. She moved in just close enough so he could catch her whisper, "Please just pretend for now!"

Finally catching onto what she was trying to do, he kept his arms around her shoulders. "Sorry I got... held up," he replied, letting his head turn to face his followers upon uttering the last two words loud enough for the horde to hear. He noticed that the girl in his arms completed the gesture by leaning to the side and narrowing her eyes at the girls like a jealous girlfriend.

Kagome took time to observe the girls' reactions. Most of them seemed put out by the appearance of a supposed girlfriend, others however still needed convincing. She didn't get long to think about how else to convince them of their false relationship when the man spoke up, looking straight over her head to the three men.

"And are these your _friends_?" he asked, sending pointed glares at the men in question.

To this, Kagome turned to the degenerates who had chased her and replied venomously, "Not exactly."

In response to her answer, whether it was just the gentlemanly thing to do or just a way for him to solidify the illusion of intimacy, Steve was unsure but he ended up moving the woman in his arms so that he had placed himself between her and the jerks who had most likely been disrespectful towards her.

"I'd appreciate it if you guys would leave my girlfriend alone now," he addressed them, keeping an arm around his 'girlfriend's' shoulder, pleased when the three of them turned and skulked back the way they came. When they were gone, he turned to the woman who breathed a sigh of relief. "Do you still want to get that coffee?"

Kagome for the second time that afternoon blinked up at him. Was he genuinely asking her out? He seemed pretty sincere and she figured she'd already had a crappy day, they helped each other out and she'd already kissed him... What was the harm in a coffee?

She smiled. "Sure! As long as you're done here," she clarified, gesturing at the women who were now quite convinced the man was an unavailable target and were slowly dispersing.

The last of the hopeful women left when they heard his reply.

"I'd rather be having coffee with you."

* * *

**Hey! So I was completely blown away by the response to my first chapter! I feel so privileged that you all took the time to read over this and that you guys actually enjoyed it! So as a thank-you, I fixed up a quick follow-up chapter! I have been tweaking this one for a while so sorry if some of the reading flow is choppy, it was a difficult one to edit!**

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**And a huge thank-you to:**

KEdakumi

**starmienight**

**SweetHunniiBunnii**

**kristina. .3**

**Misslovinga**

**Kenjo**

**HalfBlackWolfDemon**

**dark shadowed rose**

**Kaddy16**

**Angel4EverLostInLife**

**Avainie**

**Purplediamon**

**GiggleboxGirlie**

**grimmich**

**ultima-owner**

**... for taking the time to review! I so enjoyed all of your comments!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


	3. Fountain of Youth

While they walked side by side back towards the café Steve had only recently fled, Kagome decided to strike up a conversation, now that they weren't surrounded by spectators. Though she noticed that plenty of people turned their heads when they caught sight of the tall muscular man by her side… and she was sure it wasn't just for his good looks and physique. But she would leave that question for later. For now, she had to break the awkward silence.

"Sorry about the – well – you know what," she apologised.

"The kiss?" he clarified. When she turned bright red, he was surprised that she felt so embarrassed by something she had instigated herself. He knew the women of this time were much less modest than he knew them to be, and had initially pegged her boldness down to her modern upbringing. Perhaps not all modern girls were so brazen after all.

"Yeah. I don't – I don't normally do stuff like that. I just thought you and I both needed to get out of a sticky situation and that was all I came up with," she explained, desperately trying not to look at him in the eyes. "I'm also really sorry if you have an actual girlfriend."

At this he smiled, nonchalantly adding, "Or a wife?"

When her face lost all colour at the prospect of having kissed a married man, he chuckled at her expression. Figuring out he was teasing her, she slapped him on the arm with a slight pout.

"But regardless of the fact that you kissed a stranger without thinking of the consequences or their permission, your plan worked pretty well," he commented.

She uttered back a quiet, "Thank you," and "Sorry."

Before the conversation could settle into silence again, she asked, "So what do you do for a living Mr.-"

"Rogers. I'm Steve Rogers," he filled in for her, quickly offering to shake her hand.

She couldn't help thinking that it was perfect luck to have run into (and kissed) such a gentleman. Taking his much larger hand in hers she supplied her own name in return, "I'm Kagome Higurashi. So what is it you do Mr. Rogers?"

Withdrawing his hand, noticing a light tingling in his palm, he answered using a rehearsed script provided by S.H.E.I.L.D. he had memorised for these questions, "I'm in law enforcement at the moment. I'm currently off-duty today. You?"

If she caught the mechanical undertones in his voice, and she did, she didn't show it and continued the conversation, "I'm looking for a job. Actually I got turned down four times today so it's been pretty hard finding work at the moment."

"Surely it's not that hard to find work that fits around school hours?" Steve commented.

He was surprised when instead of answering him, Kagome stopped and stared at him. Slowly, a small but not exactly cheerful smile formed out on her face while she spoke, "That's my problem, I _don't_ go to school. People keep assuming I'm too young or not qualified enough to have a full time job when I'm not really a student."

Steve took the time to really take in Kagome Higurashi's appearance. He still thought that on the surface she looked like a young girl who was just entering her adult life, her youthful face and small frame testament to that conclusion. That idea alone made his stomach twist uncomfortably at the thought he might have kissed a girl who was young and innocent… despite her taking the initiative. But upon closer inspection, he recognised features about her that didn't belong to a normal teenager.

Her stance was tall and straight, unusual even for this era where almost everyone slouched, her hands were dainty, but had a slight roughness about them that indicated she had been performing some strenuous tasks in her past, and under the surface of her bright blue eyes were shadows that he only saw in the eyes of the elderly.

Curiosity now piqued, Steve turned to the girl who looked no more than twenty and asked, "If you don't mind me asking Miss Higurashi, how old are you?"

She pursed her lips and resumed walking. Moving to walk by her side once more, Steve thought he might have asked too sensitive a question, offended her and resulting in her silence, but was proven wrong when she replied, "I'm actually twenty-nine."

"You're twenty-nine?" he exclaimed with incredulity.

She nodded morosely. "And I'm thirty in a month. I don't know why, but I don't look like I've aged since I was eighteen," she added. And it was the truth. She knew that time travelling and playing around with powerful objects such as the Shikon Jewel would have had side effects, and maybe this was it, but she truly did not know the _exact_ reason she maintained her eighteen year old image.

Steve was still trying to process that information when she turned the question on him. "Now that you know my age, how old are _you_ Mr. Rogers?"

Kagome knew he was older than he looked. If she were to guess his age by sight, she would have said he was maybe in his mid to late twenties. But after examining his aura, she would've put him in well into his eighties or nineties, which was confusing for her because it was impossible for a human to be that age and look that way at the same time without youkai blood. However, there was an anomaly she detected in his aura that was neither human nor youkai which might have had something to do with it. Needless to say she was interested in his answer.

Steve contemplated answering her truthfully, but he hadn't met someone, especially a woman who didn't know him as Captain America in such a long time, that he was eager to see where this new acquaintance would lead if he didn't mention his other persona right away. If he saw her again, which at this point was a possibility he was interested in, he would eventually tell her, but for now he was going to play the average man.

"I'm about the same age as you, twenty-seven," he answered. It was a half-truth, and really just an estimated guess on Steve's part. Having being frozen at around the age of twenty-five, he wasn't sure if he'd remained twenty-five over seventy years, aged slowly or not aged at all due to the serum and vita-rays in his body. So he went with aged slowly.

Kagome smiled, more genuinely this time, "At least you look the part."

"Miss Higurashi, it is of my understanding that most women would love to stay looking youthful like you do," he countered.

Her smile shifted to a sly grin as they reached the café, "You'll find I'm not like most women, Mr Rogers."

* * *

**I know you guys were looking forward to the coffee scene, but I thought it would be more realistic if Steve and Kagome had this conversation on the way to the shop rather than spend like ten minutes saying nothing about the kiss, their names etc, until they sat down to have the coffee! Anywho, hope you enjoyed! AND LOOK FORWARD TO THE COFFEE SCENE! :3 Also comments have been made about longer chapters, but as I have mentioned, this is a sporadic fic I made out of whimsy so i can't make many promises with this one... Not like I'm the best at keeping promises anyway...**

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**And a huge thank-you to:**

KEdakumi, starmienight, SweetHunniiBunnii, HalfBlackWolfDemon, dark shadowed rose, Kaddy16, anitacm, Angel4EverLostInLife, Purplediamon, GiggleboxGirlie, grimmich, ultima-owner, Taisho Mikazuki, Diane, Katarin Kishika, alice, furuba-suzume, Spastic Freak, OptimusPrimeAddict, Kappa Taicho, Applejax XD, Infinities Lover, TheNotSoNiceLibrarian

**... for taking the time to review! I so enjoyed all of your comments!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


	4. Twenty Questions

Steve finally had that coffee he'd first come out of Stark Tower for, and he fiddled with the empty mug as he waited for Kagome to finish her own cup of tea before she answered his question. They had fallen into a game of twenty questions, taking turns in asking for relatively trivial knowledge about each other.

Daintily setting down her cup when she was done, she spoke, "It's a hard one, but I think my favourite colour would have to be red. What do you do in your spare time?"

"I don't get a lot of spare time but when I do, I usually spend it here. I enjoy observing the world and the people in it," he replied, though he didn't mention that he did it because he wanted to understand more about the people of the modern world and how to act like them. "Also Mr. James makes the best coffee around."

Kagome laughed, "Well that's true. This is a really great café."

"I'm glad you like it. Now, what do _you_ do in your spare time when you're not running into strangers and kissing them?" he asked, chuckling at the vivid red that coloured her cheeks.

"For your information Mr. Rogers, I like to spend my free time reading, cooking and when possible I like to practice Kyudo," she said.

"Kyudo?" he asked, having never heard the term before.

Kagome nodded and explained, "It's the Japanese martial art of archery. Kyudo was the sport I chose during middle school and now it's become one of my favourite pastimes."

"I have a friend who does archery as well. I take it you must be fairly good at it then?" he asked.

She wasn't able to say that using the bow to protect herself from being killed on far more than one occasion made her deadly very quickly, so she settled with, "I'd say I'm better than average."

"Should I be worried?" he asked playfully.

At this, she chuckled, "Are you going to give me a reason to hurt you?"

"Never."

There was a moment's pause. The pause lingered much longer than it should have. Kagome lifted her eyes to meet his, and felt herself heat up under the intensity of his stare. She offered a grateful smile she hoped would pass off as normal, and prayed to whatever god would hear her that her blush would go away.

"Then you have nothing to worry about," Kagome answered back, struggling to keep her voice from wavering.

Steve didn't know what had possessed him to say that. A simple 'no' would have been a more than acceptable answer. 'Never' suggested something… _more_. There was a lot more promise and intent behind his answer. He couldn't deny his physical attraction to her. She was beautiful, in an exotic kind of way. Unusual yet gentle features, flawless pale skin, incredibly blue eyes and a lithe body. And yet there was something else that pulled him towards her, something about her that he connected with and made him want to stay near her.

His phone buzzed sharply in his pocket, breaking the mood that had fallen upon them. He pulled the phone out of his pocket to check who it was. Seeing the name flashing at him, he sighed. A message from Nick Fury. If it had been anyone _but_ Nick Fury, he could have ignored it.

"Excuse me, I just have to check this," he apologized to Kagome before opening the message, recalling how Tony had shown him how to use the device.

As soon as he opened the text, an image of Kagome and himself kissing filled the screen. Directly underneath was Fury's message, '_Stark Tower. NOW._'

Dread filled his stomach as he stared at the image. He tentatively glanced at Kagome, whose attention thankfully was on her teacup rather than him. Steve pocketed his phone again, and stood.

"I'm so sorry Miss Higurashi, but something's come up," he said, keeping his voice calm.

"Your work?" she asked.

"My boss says he needs to speak with me," he said grimly.

She grimaced, "I hope everything's okay."

"It should be… Would you like me to escort you home Miss Higurashi?" he asked, remembering what had caused her to run into him in the first place and not wanting her in trouble as soon as he left.

At this, her smile returned. "Thank you but I should be able to manage."

"Are you sure?" he asked.

This time she giggled, "Yes I'll be fine! You have places to be, so go! I had a really great time, so thank-you Mr. Rogers."

Remembering that in America, people often shook hands in greeting, she shyly offered her hand. Her heart did flip flops in her chest when instead of a usual handshake, he tilted her hand before leaning down and softly grazing her knuckles with a light kiss.

"It was a pleasure to have run into you Miss Higurashi," he said in farewell, leaving her frozen in her chair. Her mind was reeling over the events of the last two hours and all she could do was sit red-faced, smiling to herself while she thought of her spur-of-the-moment date.

When she finally collected herself, she stood and made her way to the counter.

"I want to pay for the tea on table six," she told Mr. James, pulling out her wallet.

"The young gentleman you were with has already paid for it," the barrister informed her.

"Oh. Well, then thank you for the tea!" she said as she left the café, her smile brightening with each step on her way home.

A gentleman indeed…

* * *

**Ah chivalry... I DECLARE IT'S NOT DEAD! Anyway, I'm still completely blown away by the response from you guys! I've had some great feedback! A couple of you pointed out some things that I definitely forgot about (all fluff and flowers in this brain when it comes to this story) because as I previously mentioned, I have no particular agenda for this story. So, I would like to thank **dark shadowed rose **and **KEdakumi** for being the awesome two to make me remember important details that I would have definitely glossed over!**

**Anywho, I really hoped you liked the coffee scene! And expect more fluff to come! Also next chapter could be a big one, or a double update...**

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**And a huge thank-you to:**

KEdakumi, Kappa Taicho, Katarin Kishika, xx-BlackXRoseXLust-xx, alice, shintochick, naruke3176, Avainie, ForgottenOncePromised, piccolojr212002, SweetHunniiBunnii, HalfBlackWolfDemon, dark shadowed rose, Kaddy16, anitacm, Angel4EverLostInLife, Purplediamon, GiggleboxGirlie, ultima-owner, furuba-suzume, Spastic Freak, Infinities Lover, TheNotSoNiceLibrarian

**... for taking the time to review! I so enjoyed all of your comments!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


	5. Eyes Everywhere

As soon as Steve reached the penthouse of Stark Tower, he was greeted with one exceptionally pissed off Fury, one stoic Agent Hill and one smug faced Tony Stark. Before he could say a word, Fury held up a screen with the image of him and Kagome on it.

"What is this?" Fury asked tersely.

"I believe that is our Captain making out with one hot chick," Tony supplied, grinning mischievously at Steve, throwing a wink in his direction. "Nice work Cap'!"

"I wasn't asking you, Stark," Fury shot back.

Tony ignored him, "I mean she's smoking hot, but is she even legal?! She looks half your age! Though that's not hard, you know considering..." He trailed off, gesturing at the Captain.

"What are you even doing here, Tony?" Steve asked exasperatedly.

Tony stared at him as if it was the obvious thing in the world. Which it was. "My tower."

The Director rolled his visible eye slowly, trying to reign himself in rather than make a point. He tapped the screen in front of him and a number of articles replaced the image, all titled with various headlines. The boldest one read, '_HOT NEWS: Captain America's Secret Girlfriend?!_'

Steve frowned grabbing the screen. "How did they get that so quickly? There weren't any reporters around!"

"This is the modern world, Cap'. Everyone's a reporter," Tony said in a matter-of-factly tone, pouring himself a drink from the bar.

Fury's voice barely controlled his irritation as he spoke, "More importantly, is this girl involved with you?"

"Involved in what way?" Steve asked.

Tony cut in again, "Romantically? Or just… Physically?" Steve felt his jaw clench at what he was insinuating.

"She's not that kind of woman, Stark," he grit out. "I ran into her. I mean, I actually _ran into her_ while I was trying to get away from a mob of women. She was also trying to get away from some guys who were harassing her, so she decided that we should pretend to be in a relationship to get out of the whole situation. That was the first time I'd met her, _ever_. After her plan worked, we had coffee, we talked, she apologised, you texted me and I left. That was it!"

There was a short silence while Fury stewed over Steve's information. Eventually, he spoke, looking him dead in the eyes, "Does she know who you are?"

"No."

"Does she know how to contact you?" Tony asked.

At this, Steve blinked. Despite having entertained the idea of seeing her again, in his rush to get back to Stark Tower he'd forgotten all about _how_ to see her again. All he had was her name, and she, his.

With audible regret, he responded, "No."

Tony sighed in mock despair, "I didn't know you were _that_ rusty, Cap'. Do you even know her name?"

A smile pulled at the corners of his mouth. He almost said her name, but seeing the expectant look in Fury's stare, he opted for, "Yes."

"Agent Hill, find out who this girl is and pull up everything you can find on her immediately," Fury ordered, ticked off by Rogers' obvious refusal to disclose any information he needed.

Steve's smile disappeared instantly. "Whoa, hold up. Isn't that a little extreme? I don't think invading her privacy is necessary."

Fury fixed a glare in his direction.

"You don't 'think' it's necessary? We don't know who she is. There is a strong chance that she could be a spy, getting close to you to gather intel., retrieve objects of high importance or trying to break the Avengers team from the inside," Director Fury explained. "I don't take risks on thoughts, Rogers."

Tony added in, "There's also a chance she's trying to make her 'claim to fame' by using you."

"And what if she isn't a spy and has no ulterior motives?" Steve asked, growing more and more frustrated with the assumptions Fury and Tony were making. He was especially getting sick of the Director's overreaction to everything and anything.

"You are a superhero," the director said, enunciating each word. "Do you realize the dangers of having your loved ones publicly known?"

"She's not a 'loved one'!"

Fury continued, louder this time, "Your enemies won't know that! We had to move Jane, to a remote island in the middle of an ocean, just to protect her from Loki even though Thor hadn't seen her in months! It is my job to keep Earth safe from those who wish to harm it. And if this _girl_ has the potential to bring down Earth's greatest protection, then I _will_ know all I need to know about her. If she's an enemy, we will react accordingly. If she's not, then you will have put her in danger's way because you were careless."

Steve felt guilt settle over him like a heavy blanket. He didn't know how but he knew Kagome was no threat to himself, the Avengers or Earth. And although the kiss was her plan, it was his fault that they were plastered on every newspaper in New York and beyond as well as the potential danger to her life even if he never saw her again… This was not how his afternoon was supposed to be ending.

Gathering his thoughts on the matter, he looked back at Fury, "So what do we do first?"

Fury replied bluntly, "Invade her privacy."

Steve scowled. "Fine. You can do that, but I'm having no part in this," he retorted, standing up and heading back out of the room. There was no way he was going to let Kagome get involved with the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D. and himself anymore than this.

"Rogers! We need her name!" Fury barked

Steve didn't bother to look behind him. "No, you don't."

* * *

Kagome sighed as she stared at her phone. She was sitting at Mr. James' café. She told herself it was because Mr. James made the best tea and coffee in the entire city, but a quiet though not so small part of her was hoping she might run into Steve again. It had been a week since that afternoon, and in that time she had joined a temp agency in hopes of finding odd jobs around. The agency had told her they might have a job for her and would call her, but it was nearly one o'clock and there was still no response. She grumbled incoherently and picked up her phone, checking it again before being miserably disappointed.

With another long sigh, she pocketed her phone and stood. A quick glance told her that Steve Rogers wasn't in the café or even approaching it so she made her way to the counter, paid Mr. James for her tea and a croissant for the road. Not that she could drive. Having nothing better to do, she meandered down the sidewalk. Lack of work, people to catch up with and literally only waiting on her agenda, allowed her to fall back into memories of the past.

Thinking of the past wrought multiple mixed emotions within her. Happiness when reflecting on the great times she'd had with her Feudal friends. Anger at Naraku, and on occasion Inuyasha. All kinds of love, for her friends, her kit, for Inuyasha. Fear for her life. Exhilaration when she recalled the feeling of being on Kirara's or Inuyasha's back, speeding through the air or ground. Overwhelming joy when they defeated their enemy and the Shikon disappeared. And finally sadness when it was made clear that the Bone Eater's Well wouldn't let her return to the Feudal era.

She never had the chance to say goodbye. And despite her numerous attempts at trying to reopen the well, nothing changed. It took her five years to get over it, and even then, she found it hard to deal with the ordinariness of the modern world. Nothing excited her quite like the thrill of a fight. Not even moving to a foreign country. Relationships seemed flimsy and shallow. Her world was no longer full of the brightness of nature but rather a mass of cold grey blocks.

"Ow!" came a sharp cry beside her.

Kagome jumped and turned to the source of the noise seeing a woman clutching her foot. It took mere seconds for her to realise what had happened.

"I am so sorry I wasn't paying attention! Is your foot okay?!" Kagome apologised, thoroughly surprised when the woman let go of her trampled foot and lifted her head to face her.

Kagome had never seen such a stunning young woman... besides a few youkai that were designed to attract the male species. This woman was all sultry curves, smooth skin and an impossibly fiery crown of red curls framed a beautiful face.

The woman forced a smile through the pain. "It's okay, I think."

"No it's not okay! Daydreaming is no excuse to step on people. I should really be paying attention to where I walk!" Kagome floundered, not really knowing what else to say.

The other woman however smiled at her turmoil and quieted her by placing her hand on Kagome's shoulder.

"Really. No blood, no foul! If you really want to make it up with me, do you want to join me at my gym tomorrow morning?" she asked.

At this, confusion blossomed on Kagome's face. "Why would you need me to go to a gym with you?" She was quite sure this wasn't a normal request; no one offered such a thing to someone who they'd just met. Though, she soon reminded herself that she had kissed someone right after running into them just a week ago.

The woman sighed, "New gym. I don't have anyone to go with and I'd really like the company."

The expression the woman wore reminded Kagome of Sango and she replied with a mild giggle at the memory, "I'd love to but I don't think I can afford to."

The redhead was quick to respond, "That's okay! My friend was _supposed _to be coming with me but since she's pulled out, you can take her place!"

Kagome raised a brow, "So I crush your foot and you invite me to a gym with free membership? Somehow that doesn't seem fair...

The woman pouted, "Please? You'd be doing me a huge favour! You can bring another friend with you if you feel uncomfortable going alone with me! I'll pay for them!"

She sighed. It was a completely odd request from a stranger but then again last week odder things occurred… and it wasn't as if she had other things to do. Kagome supposed that she _could _bring someone as well if it felt too weird going alone.

"Oh alright!" Kagome relented, seeing a smile brighten the woman's already gorgeous face.

"Perfect! I'll grab your number and I'll text you the details," the woman bubbled excitedly, pulling out her phone. When she was ready, she leaned towards Kagome, eyes focused on her screen, "What's your number?"

Kagome told the woman her number as she was finding her own phone. "Oh, and I'm Kagome Higurashi by the way!"

The woman looked up at her. "Is that a Japanese name?"

At this, Kagome was surprised, "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I spent some time there myself on a holiday. I'm Natasha Romanov," the woman, Natasha, introduced.

Kagome frowned in thought before her face cleared, "Russian name?"

Natasha nodded, "Yeah! Well, I have to get going so I'll text you my number and where to go! Okay? Thank you so much Kagome! You're really helping me out!"

"That's alright! See you tomorrow!"

Natasha headed down the sidewalk again after giving her a quick wave, and slightly bewildered Kagome turned to continue on her way home, completely missing when the redhead turned to double check behind her.

Once Kagome was out of sight, Natasha made her way to a black SUV parked within an empty backalley and pulled her phone out again, speed dialling number one. As soon as she heard the other line pick up, Natasha spoke, "Tell Director Fury he's looking for Kagome Higurashi."

There was a pause on the other end, before she heard,_ "Good work. Director Fury would like you come back for a debriefing."_

* * *

**Well this was an interesting chapter. More like fluff from afar. But necessary to plot development unfortunately... **

**Also I know Natasha seemed OOC, but she's trying to win Kagome's trust undercover so I thought it was okay to be a little OOC just for the parts where she's pretending to be an normal person and not an assassin. I apologise as well for the sudden week long gap between Steve's part and Kagome's.**

**I am also blown away that I'm five chapters in and nearly 100 reviews already! I really do feel loved guys and I really didn't expect the positive response so it means a lot!**

**I could be a fair bit late for the next update, especially since I'LL BE IN ROME NEXT WEEK! *cues squealing* That's right, been working hard all year and now I am on a ninety-day trip to Italy all on my own! I've also started a travel blog if you want to see it. It's: theredtassel. wordpress .com but the real blogging won't start until a week's time when I get on the plane!**

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**And a huge thank-you to:**

KEdakumi, Kappa Taicho, alice, shintochick, Avainie, ForgottenOncePromised, SweetHunniiBunnii, HalfBlackWolfDemon, dark shadowed rose, Kaddy16, Angel4EverLostInLife, Purplediamon, GiggleboxGirlie, ultima-owner, furuba-suzume, Infinities Lover, TheNotSoNiceLibrarian, Sesshiesfangirl, kristina. m. haynes. 3, OptimusPrimeAddict, Fluffly is Amazing, minory-chan, AnimeLoverJur, Iron Mikan Frost-Elric-Uzumaki, sverhei, edithlove100, Kiara. Queen. of. Kaos, x-moon-surfer-x, ShadowXMoonlight, shayrulz. grimmich, foxgoddess07, AppleJax XD, Silversun XD

**... for taking the time to review! I so enjoyed all of your comments!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


	6. Out of All the People in New York

Steve was getting sick of all the stares, comments and questions about the kiss between himself and Kagome. Tony had said that nearly forty percent of the people asking him had probably been sent by S.H.I.E.L.D. to try and get something out of him and he was probably right. Some had been far nosier and more persistent than others. Not only that, but he hadn't been able to leave the tower due to all of the press who had staked out at the front door. He'd hoped they'd have dissipated in number by the end of the week, but if anything it seemed his secrecy and lack of answers spurned them on and made the curiosity multiply.

As he sat down for breakfast, he cursed Stark for giving away his secret identity half a year ago. Being drunk did not excuse leaking important and private information at a party that was highly covered by the media. At least the billionaire had been given a rather strong lecture from Fury afterwards when he was sober, but that didn't change the fact that everyone now knew his name and face. Or at least, everyone except Kagome.

Tired of being cooped up in the tower for a week now, Steve hurriedly stashed his empty plate into the sink and he quickly made his way to the tower's lift, pressing the basement floor. Tony had designed the basement to be for Avengers only, and was only accessible by personal authentication. As soon as the lift reached the basement, the doors opened to reveal a huge underground room mostly filled with Stark's various gadgets. Off to one side, Rogers found what he was looking for.

His bikes.

Steve had been collecting them since they had defeated the Chitauri and storing them in the tower basement. And what better means of escaping the media than speeding out before they can think to catch him?

So that was what he did. He grabbed a helmet with a reflective visor, brought his fastest bike out of the basement and sped out of the back entrance before any of the crowd outside of the tower even realised he'd left. The thrill of being on the back of a motorcycle was always an incredible feeling for Steve. With the rush of wind in his ears, his focus on the traffic he was weaving through and the feeling of flying, he was able to forget about his aggravating week in the tower.

It didn't take him long to make a good distance from the tower, and while he was busy reveling in his freedom, someone stepped out onto the road ahead of him without paying attention to the oncoming traffic, more specifically, him.

Worried he would hit the pedestrian, he brought the bike to a skidding halt, being careful not to topple the bike either. He got close enough to hear a woman give a cry of alarm and he closed his eyes as he prayed for his bike to stop before he killed someone. When his bike came to a full stop, his heart was hammering in his throat as he assessed the situation. Miraculously, his bike had stopped mere inches away from impact and the woman he'd almost run over was thankfully alive if not a little shell shocked.

Then he got a good look at the woman.

Long black waves... petite form... wide bright blue eyes...

"Kagome?!"

She blinked through her shock when she heard a familiar voice say her name. When recognition dawned on her face, she looked as if she was seeing straight through the screen of his reflective helmet and straight into his eyes.

"Steve?!"

Getting out of traffic's way, he pulled the bike to the edge of the sidewalk before he took off his helmet. Kagome followed him off the road and sat down on the edge off the street looking a little worse for wear. Her heart was practically breaking out of her chest, adrenaline coursing through her body and yet her legs hardly had the strength to keep her standing. She hadn't felt this way since...

"Are you alright Miss Higurashi?" he asked, concern for her well being seeping through his voice. He did after all, just nearly run over her mere seconds ago.

She put a hand to her pounding heart and laughed nervously, "Well it definitely wasn't the worst shock I've ever experienced, but I wouldn't say I'd want to go through it again." Before he had long to wonder what her worst moment could possibly be, she looked up at him with a wry smile. "I hope running into me isn't going to be a thing with you."

At this, Steve laughed as well. "Well maybe if you were more aware of your surroundings, you would see me coming next time."

She blushed embarrassedly. "You have a point but _you _were technically speeding! You'd think a guy in law enforcement would know what happens when you speed," she pointed out.

Guilt spread all over his face. His voice was quiet, "Yes, I know. I'm really sorry."

Kagome took a good look at him. He suddenly seemed anxious somehow, fidgety and his eyes darting everywhere. His restlessness was seeping through his aura as well. "Is everything okay, Mr. Rogers?" she asked gently.

His wandering eyes flew back to her. Taking a few seconds to gather his thoughts, he replied, "Yeah, just lost control a little bit back there."

"Bad day?"

"Bad week."

"Do I need to rescue you from a savage pack of girls again?" she joked, hoping to lighten the mood.

A bemused smile erased the solemnity on his face. "Not this time."

Figuring that with the lack of explanation, he wasn't really up to talking about it. He still however seemed out of sorts, and with the way he was hurtling down the road earlier, Kagome thought he needed to get away from whatever was bugging him.

"Do you want to get out of here?" she asked.

Steve looked down at her in bewilderment. Since she'd mentioned he was in 'law enforcement', he'd remembered his conversation with Fury about being careful in public. Now he had somehow run into the very girl he was trying to convince the public _and _Fury he had no relation with at all. And by some bizarre stroke of luck, she didn't seem as if she'd noticed the picture of them kissing... even though they'd been plastered over anything that covered news.

He was now hyperaware of everyone around them. Of the tourists that were pointing at him in excitement. Of the girls eying him off at the hot dog stand. And especially of those that had paused momentarily to take photos of him. This would not be good for Kagome if someone recognised her from the recent kiss photos. Fury would suspect something, the press would have a field day, and who knows what might happen to Kagome.

Just as he was contemplating how to excuse himself from her presence without seeming rude, she asked him outright if he wanted to leave. Deep down, he didn't really want to leave but it was better for the both of them if they didn't see too much of each other.

"I'm meeting up with someone at a gym this morning, she said I could bring someone. You seem pretty tense so I was wondering, if maybe… you wanted to come along… maybe?" she asked. She mentally groaned at the uncertainty in her voice, wishing she didn't make herself sound like she was back in high school.

Steve noticed that she was indeed dressed in exercise gear. A simple black singlet, bright white sneakers and tight fitted leggings… "A gym?" he asked, wrenching his eyes away from her legs. He was unsure if they should go anywhere together. Especially with Fury after her.

"Well, yeah... I mean you don't have to if you don't want to," Kagome answered, twiddling bashfully with strand of her hair as she rambled. "I just kind of... thought... maybe... never mind."

With the sight of her sitting on the edge of the sidewalk, a light blush on her cheeks and averting her blue eyes, he made his decision. He was _not_ going to let Fury and the media control, question and harass him every time he tried to talk to anyone who wasn't a superhero. It wasn't fair on him and it definitely wasn't fair on her. He was going to befriend with whoever he wanted to.

"So where is this gym?"

When she looked up at him with one of the brightest smiles he'd seen, he knew he'd made the right decision.

"It's just another block down," she started excitedly. She thought he'd turn her down for sure. He'd looked so apprehensive about the idea at first but now she wondered if there was something else that caused that. She was thrilled he was joining her though. She could feel warmth inside her that always seemed to flutter to life whenever she looked at him, despite this being only their second encounter.

Steve offered his hand to help her up, which she took happily. Once on her feet though, she noticed that their faces were suddenly very close. Struggling not to think about the last time they were at this close proximity, or how blue his eyes looked in the morning sun, she let go of his hand and walked around him.

"The gym is this way!" she said cheerily. Maybe a little too much cheer.

Steve was baffled. Had Kagome not broken away, he probably would have re-enacted their last meeting; which completely went against everything he believed about treating women. Steve Rogers _was not_ the kind of man to arbitrarily kiss pretty women! No matter how soft her pink lips looked or how her bright eyes gazed up at him.

He wouldn't deny he felt something deeper than just friendship with Kagome, but that did not give him permission to kiss her every time he felt like it. He wouldn't allow himself to do that to her. Kagome was a woman who deserved to be treated properly, with love trust and respect. And if by some miracle, she reciprocated his feelings and was okay with being the girlfriend of a superhero, _then_ he would.

When Steve didn't follow after her, Kagome turned around to look at him questioningly, and he realized he'd been staring. Within three short strides, he was by her side again. He felt oddly comfortable being beside her, and he mused that even from what little he knew of her, he would definitely be interested in seeing if their friendship could move into something more. But for now, he would happily stick with being her friend.

* * *

As they approached the gym, Kagome breathed a sigh of relief, glad the gym looked like an ordinary gym and not some shady business. Lots of people were going in and out, it was on a main road and from the outside seemed pretty clean.

As they stepped through the automatic sliding doors into the building, Kagome approached the woman at the reception desk. She had her phone in hand with Natasha's texted instructions ready on her screen.

"I'm here with Natasha and I've brought a friend with me," she told the receptionist.

The receptionist immediately nodded and smiled brightly at them both. Kagome noticed that the woman's cheeks turned a faint pink when she noticed Steve. "Natasha already took care of it, go straight through!"

Kagome thanked the receptionist while simultaneously squashing the slight jealousy she was feeling. It wasn't as if Steve was her boyfriend. Instead she made her way to the doors the receptionist had indicated. Of course Steve beat her to it and held the door open for her, resulting in her heart doing exercises of its own as she murmured a bashful, "Thank you."

It didn't take long for her to find Natasha, having scanned the expanse of the gym and catching sight of flaming red hair. Natasha had her back to them and it seemed as if she had started some light warm ups. Kagome pointed to the woman and told Steve, "That's my friend there! I'll introduce you two!"

As soon as Steve caught sight of Kagome's 'friend', he felt as if time froze for a moment. He knew that red hair. And Kagome had mentioned a Natasha with the receptionist. It was a slim chance of there being another Natasha with short red curls in New York, but he was hoping with everything he had that Kagome's Natasha was not Natasha Romanov. Hope could only go so far.

Kagome didn't notice when Steve stayed put while she approached Natasha. Instead, as soon as she was close enough, Kagome tapped her on the shoulder and announced with a smile, "I made it!"

Natasha returned the smile and said, "Thank you so much Kagome! I'm so glad you came! It would have been so _boring_ going alone."

"I hope you don't mind but I've brought a friend with me!" Kagome said, just as Steve was approaching, stopping close beside her. She did not miss the way Natasha's eyes widened when she saw him. "Natasha, this is Steve Rogers. I ran into him this morning and invited him last minute. Steve, this is Natasha Romanov. I stepped on her foot yesterday which is why I'm filling in for her friend."

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Romanov," Steve said, barely managing to make it sound polite.

Natasha seemed to have no effort in making herself sound delighted to 'meet' him, but her eyes spoke volumes of displeasure. "Nice to meet you too, Steve."

* * *

**A little choppy but I really wanted to get this out so I could do start on the rest of the gym scene! Trust me! I'm really glad you guys liked the last chapter despite the lack of Steve/Kag fluff, but to answer some of your requests, unfortunately getting to see Kagome spar with Natasha is going to have to be on the backburner since: A) Kagome's trying to be a normal young woman of nearly thirty and B) So is Natasha while trying to deceive Kagome. It wouldn't make sense if both women who are trying to not reveal their identities would bust out in ninja moves in a public gym... also, that would destroy some epic chapter ideas I have set up for the future!**

**But because so many wanted to see some ninja Kagome vs. Natasha action, I will add some in when the time is appropriate :)**

**Anywho, FOUR MORE DAYS TO GO! I'm FREAKING OUT! **

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**And a huge thank-you to:**

SweetHunniiBunnii, HalfBlackWolfDemon, dark shadowed rose, Angel4EverLostInLife, GiggleboxGirlie, ultima-owner, furuba-suzume, TheNotSoNiceLibrarian, OptimusPrimeAddict, minory-chan, Iron Mikan Frost-Elric-Uzumaki, Kiara. Queen. of. Kaos, foxgoddess07, Silversun XD, kirahigurashi, Anake14, deebeeth89, LittleNK, Guest, Spastic Freak, SilverontheRose, imimground, youshouldn'tneedtoknow, Mugiwara Otome

**... for taking the time to review! I so enjoyed all of your comments! Also one of you (not telling who) read my mind on a scene that's coming up!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


	7. I Spy

"Sir, I've got Kagome Higurashi's background check," Agent Hill announced, carrying a thin Manila folder under her arm.

At this, Fury waved her over and practically snatched the file off her, hastily reading the woman's details. He huffed when he finished scanning the important sections of her file. Rogers had been right, she was clean. At least according to the American and Japanese government. No public offences. No criminal record. Not even an overdue bill. Graduated from high school with good scores, perfect health and according to what he read, frequently volunteered at hospitals. A model citizen.

"Did you find anything abnormal?" he asked Agent Hill, wondering if she had anymore on the girl.

"No sir. There was nothing we could find out of order," she replied.

He dropped the open file onto his desk in agitation. Now he had another civilian brought into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s affairs. He had half a mind to call Romanov and tell her not to bother with the Higurashi girl anymore. Or at least he did until he took a closer look at the page that had slid out from underneath the top sheet. He probably wouldn't have noticed it otherwise.

He pulled the sheet out from the rest of the file and read the header. It was her educational history. The line that caught his attention was sitting between her middle school and high school information. _'Repeated absences due to severe illness required supplementary lessons.'_ There were no medical documents listed to confirm this. Fury frowned and sifted through the rest of her file to her medical history. There were no records of hospital or medical clinic visitations between her middle and high school years. At all.

He pulled out his phone and dialled Romanov.

* * *

Kagome felt the wave of tension hit her like Inuyasha hit the ground when 'sat'. The two knew each other somehow, and she got a strong feeling they probably weren't the best of friends judging by their flaring auras. However, it seemed neither Steve nor Natasha wanted to let her know that they'd already met before seeing as they'd acted as if she had only just introduced them to each other. Not wanting to pry too much, Kagome let it slide. She supposed if they had bad history together, it wasn't her business to go dig it up again.

Instead, she smiled and turned to Natasha, asking, "So what should we start with?"

Natasha ripped her eyes off Steve, matching Kagome's smile, "I was thinking maybe a spin class!"

Kagome's smile turned sheepish, not understanding the phrase. "Sorry, what's a spin class?"

"The cycles," Natasha explained, pointing to the rows and rows of exercise cycles across the gym.

"That sounds perfect," Kagome agreed, before catching sight of Steve. She could see his jaw was clenched tightly and he was sending a fierce glare in Natasha's direction. "Do you want to join us Steve, or is there something else you wanted to do?"

Steve quickly faced Kagome when she spoke to him. He could see her smile falter briefly with what looked like worry. Despite knowing what Romanov was up to, Kagome was trying to enjoy the gym and he knew his behaviour, however justified, must have appeared rude to her new 'friend'. But he was not about to let Kagome be alone with Romanov. Though it wasn't even really Natasha's fault; she _did _work for S.H.I.E.L.D. after all. This had Fury written all over it.

His face soon lost visible tension and he replied, "A spin class sounds great."

When Natasha Romanov had suggested to Kagome to bring a friend, she expected the girl to bring someone who would be able to give her more information on Higurashi and her relationship with Steve Rogers. Not the Captain himself! Had Natasha not been undercover, she would have dragged Rogers out for questioning a whole five minutes ago. According to what she'd been told, Rogers had denied being involved with Higurashi beyond a couple hours of contact due to certain circumstances. She'd also been told they had no way of contacting each other, so unless Rogers had lied, Kagome should've been unable to invite him here.

Their attraction to each other was unavoidable and so blatantly obvious, she was surprised Rogers would have lied. Rogers looked at her with a rapt attention she'd never seen on him before and his gaze grew a certain softness that appeared whenever she even looked his way... which was often. Higurashi's eyes always flicked in his direction and her body was constantly moving or leaning towards him.

She noted that Higurashi sparked a protective streak in the Captain. She knew he was joining them so he could monitor what she was doing. Though Natasha wanted to know why Rogers had lied about their relationship, her current mission was to get intel off Higurashi.

And so she would, Captain America present or not.

"Perfect! Let's go!" she said in a happy tone, waving the two over to some free cycles.

Kagome didn't miss the calculated staring Natasha had been giving Steve, and she wondered for a second time just what kind of past the two had to harbour such discontent for each other.

"Um, are you going to be okay in regular clothes Mr. Rogers?" she asked, having noticed Steve only had jeans and a shirt.

Natasha whipped around and noticed the Captain's attire for the first time. She berated herself for not noticing earlier. Maybe they weren't lying about running into each other just this morning... but what were the odds of such a coincidence?

"I should be okay, Miss Higurashi," he replied.

They took up three cycles in a row, Natasha on Kagome's right and Steve on her left. Steve was pleased that for the first couple of minutes, Natasha stuck to menial topics, such as what they each had for dinner, the weather, how they felt about the gym and Kagome returned similarly menial answers. It all seemed fairly well until Romanov stopped beating around the bush and finally asked, "So how did you two meet?"

The question had Steve immediately on guard.

The question had Kagome blushing up a storm.

"Ah well - we uh - we met last week when I - um - well..." Kagome stuttered, her exhaustion from the cycling not helping. If Rogers hadn't lied, Natasha knew how this story went, but she needed to hear it from Kagome herself. Romanov didn't miss the light pink dusting on Rogers' cheeks that she was sure did not come from exercising. "...I was being chased by some guys and Steve was being chased by girls as well, and I kind of ran into him. And seeing we were both in a bit of trouble, I thought it might be a good idea to... to... um... pretend we were boyfriend and girlfriend."

"How did you 'pretend' to be boyfriend and girlfriend? Did you just tell them?" Natasha pried.

"She kissed me," Steve answered, sending a warning glare in Natasha's direction. It was bad enough that S.H.I.E.L.D. had found Kagome and sent Natasha to spy on her, but the questions were obviously making her uncomfortable. Though Kagome was thoroughly embarrassed regardless of who said it.

"Y-Yep... and it worked..." Kagome said in quiet mortification, wishing she could just crawl into a hole and die but instead pedalled just a little faster.

Natasha hummed in response. So Rogers hadn't lied about their meeting. But had he lied about being able to contact her? "You guys been seeing each other since then huh?"

"Actually," Kagome started. "Today's only the second time we've seen each other. We... encountered each other by complete coincidence while I was on my way here."

Natasha's eyebrows rose out of genuine surprise. "Wow, what are the odds? So you guys aren't _together_ together?"

Kagome was quick to respond, "No! I mean, we've only seen each other once before! There's no way we could be like _that_... right now!" She hoped with all her might that Steve didn't take her hasty denial to heart.

"So?! I've hooked up with plenty of guys that I just liked the look of!" Natasha said. "It's totally fine!'

"I know a lot of people do that, but I don't think that's what I'm looking for," Kagome explained. "I'm looking for something a little more lasting..." That was an understatement. After being in the Feudal era for so long, she was looking for a lifelong partner. Someone she could spend the rest of her life with and more importantly, someone she could trust with _everything_. Someone who wouldn't pass her off as crazy for thinking she had travelled back in time and saved the world. Which was going to be an interesting challenge in this day and age.

Steve could only marvel at her. He honestly thought it would be impossible to find a girl like her anymore. Many of his 'fangirls' had thrown themselves at him. And when he refused them, they almost always pleaded for 'just one night'. They didn't understand that he didn't want a 'no strings attached' kind of relationship. That was Stark's domain, and even then since Ms. Potts, he didn't settle for one night stands anymore. He just wondered if Kagome could see past the superhero when he told her.

Natasha could have sighed in exasperation for the both of them. She had never seen two people so _smitten_ with each other and they seemed hardly aware of it. From what she gathered, Kagome would be perfect for him... you know, once she made the S.H.I.E.L.D. clearance and she was okay to have her life threatened due to her romantic interests...

The sound of a phone ringing beside them. Natasha's phone.

The red-head got off her cycle and picked up the phone out of her bag. She looked at Kagome apologetically and mouthed _'Sorry, just one moment!'_ When Kagome seemed fine with her answering the call, she lifted the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

Kagome turned to Steve, trying to give Natasha some privacy while she was on the phone. And though Steve wanted to listen in to who was calling her, he somehow couldn't turn away from the girl beside him.

"So Mr. Rogers, busy week ahead?" Kagome asked. "I hope this one will be better than the last."

Steve smiled. She made him sound so... normal.

"Actually I'm in the middle of a... case, and it's rather stressful to be honest," he answered.

She smiled mischeviously, "Can you tell me more or would you have to kill me?"

He laughed, understanding the joke for once. Before the war, movies and cinemas had only just started to grow, and he had enjoyed them before he had been frozen. But trying to watch modern films after being so used to the 'old stuff' as Tony had referred to it made his head spin. To ease him into the modern cinematic world, Ms. Potts gave him a list of 'Must-See-Movies' chronologically ordered by dates that he was slowly trying to get through. He had seen enough of the _007_ series to catch the reference.

But in response to Kagome, he simply said, "Something like that."

"Not just another run-of-the-mill cop then are you?" she speculated.

"Not at all," he returned with a playful grin that may or may not have shot butterflies straight into her stomach.

* * *

_"I need you to investigate what happened in Higurashi's middle school years."_

"Hey sweetie! How are you going?"

_"It seems like she filed nearly two or three years worth of extreme sick leave with no medical proof to back it up."_

"Yeah?"

_"No hospital or medical clinic visits. No family as registered doctors, or in training. And she didn't move from home either. The Higurashi family took no trips anywhere, inside or outside the country. Find out what she was doing."_

"Okay! I'm at the gym right now so I'll catch you for lunch then?"

_"Meet me back at Stark Tower."_

"Alright then. See you!"

_"Don't ever call me 'sweetie'."_

She hung up the phone with a grin. It was easy to tease her boss. Dropping the phone in her bag, she got back on the cycle.

When she caught Steve and Kagome's questioning eyes, she explained, "That was a friend of mine! He just wanted to catch up."

And so the menial conversation continued.

* * *

**Sorry for the delay! Have not had Wi-fi for the last week... Especially considering I'M IN ITALY! Woo! Three months of Tuscan awesomeness! **

**Back to the story however, part two of the gym scene is being written as we speak! Though bear in mind I've only been in Florence for about two days now after a week in Rome, I have much sightseeing still to come so apologies is there is a bit of a wait!**

**DEFINITELY, more Steve/Kag moments in Part two! But at the same time, trying to holdback considering this is literally their second meeting. The fluff machine in my brain is having a field day that reason is trying to stop operations. (Note: I may have drunk a little too much limoncello right now)**

**And REVIEW EXPLOSION MUCH? I seriously feel the love guys! And I love you too! (Seriously... too much limoncello...)**

**In regards to the whereabouts of Steve's motorbike from the last chapter, just assume he wheeled it to the gym... or maybe pretend he got Kagome on the bike as well and he whisked her away... to the gym? I don't know, like I said in chapter one, haven't really planned this one out, letting the story write itself!**

**It would be much appreciated if you would tell me what you think, what you want to see happen, what I should improve/fix!**

**And a huge thank-you to:**

SweetHunniiBunnii, HalfBlackWolfDemon, dark shadowed rose, Angel4EverLostInLife, GiggleboxGirlie, ultima-owner, furuba-suzume, TheNotSoNiceLibrarian, OptimusPrimeAddict, Iron Mikan Frost-Elric-Uzumaki, Kiara. Queen. of. Kaos, foxgoddess07, Silversun XD, Anake14, deebeeth89, LittleNK, Spastic Freak, youshouldn'tneedtoknow, Fluffly is amazing, grimmich, MiddNightt, kk, Applejax XD, Infinities Lover, Purplediamon, Avainie, Chibi-clar, Guest, Kaddy 16, Sugar0o, ShadowXMoonlight, Jazz, Vertigo Venom

**... for taking the time to review! I so enjoyed all of your comments!**

**Much love,**

**~Tigeresssa**


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